As soon as my dentist gets enough instruments in my mouth so I can't answer, he asks me "How's the family?"

What do you do in the dentist's chair when your mouth is undergoing dental procedures and you have something to say? There really aren't that many things that need saying: Yes. No. Ouch. What
are you doing now?

A hand-held speech synthesizer with no more than 10 labelled buttons ought to handle most needs.

I could use this with my dentist. For some reason he doesn't ask me yes or no questions, he asks me questions that require him to remove the picks and shovels out of my mouth so I can answer his "So, tell me what you did this summer." This of course makes the teeth cleaning appointement an hour long instead of half an hour.

My dentist told me I was a really good patient, and asked me about my life, and remembered me from my last appointment 15 years ago, and was often complimenting his assistant on the work she was doing (no, they were not sleeping together). And to top it off, he asked me if I would like to pay for it, or if it should be charged to my mom. No wonder he gets to golf 20 hours a week!